Happy Birthday Church
A Pentecost Sunday Sermon
By
Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.
OPENING: - Today is Pentecost Sunday the day we celebrate the birth of the church, not the birth of the Apostolic Church, the Methodist Church, the Catholic Church, the Baptist Church, the Episcopal Church or any other denomination. We celebrate the birth of the Church of God. The Church which was purchased by His blood Acts 20:28 says, “Take heed therefore unto yourselves, and to all the flock, over the which the Holy Ghost hath made you overseers, to feed the church of God, which he hath purchased with his own blood”. There are many brick and mortar churches, denominations, and religious entities that will look at today and claim they are the church, which is celebrated, because they have a nice edifice, wear religious grab, sing a few praise songs, and think they are the church. However, let me make this absolutely clear everyone in the church building is not part of the Ekklesia, the called-out ones, the church of God, the body of Christ. Understand the Church of God consist only of true born-again believers. This must first be understood so that we do not confuse what we sometimes see other so-called, fallible churches doing and believe that they are part of the Church of God.
The Church of God that we celebrate today can not be confined to labels, denominations, organizations, or religious propaganda. In fact, The Church Biblically is not a building no matter how nice of an edifice it is, the crowd that attends or how popular the preacher may be. The true Church of God is made up of the people who have been called out of darkness into this marvelous light the Ekklesia, who truly Repent are Baptized, and have received the precious gift of the Holy Ghost.
PRAYER: -
SCRIPTURE: - Acts 2.
We live in a time when the word Christian is used so frivolously. People use it thinking that it gives them a status in life or that because they say they are Christian then the Hellish life they are living is o.k. because I am a Christian. They feel as saying they They fail to understand that few words have as much baggage as the word Christian. The early church was called “Christians” by the powers-that-be for the first time in Antioch (Acts 11:26 says, “And when he had found him, he brought him unto Antioch. And it came to pass, that a whole year they assembled themselves with the church, and taught much people. And the disciples were called Christians first in Antioch”. It wasn’t a name Jesus’ disciples gave themselves it was a name given to them by the society in Antioch.
Let me give a little background on this word Christian. Antioch was referred to as “all the world in one city,” where you could see all the world’s richness and diversity in one place. And the marketplace was its hub. Antioch was designed like most cities of that day: A circular wall on the outside, a marketplace in the center, with the interior of the city walled in way that divided different people groups from one another. Then Enter Christ-followers, the Gospel, and The Church came to Antioch and began breaking down the dividing barriers in a way that upset the society’s existing categories, somebody say DISRUPTIVE – the Holy Ghost is DISRUPTIVE. People from all parts of the city Jews and Gentiles alike were suddenly coming together. This group of people was redefining community in a radical and unprecedented way, so much so that a new word was needed to categorize what in the world was happening.
I needed to give that brief background because we are celebrating Pentecost Sunday the birth of the Church not the birth of Christian.
Understand Pentecost is more than a one-time event, it is more than the giving of the Holy Ghost and it is more than speaking in tongues.
Pentecost was the birth of the Church of God, and the Church of God is based upon several components and not a one-time event.
First the Church of God is based upon Foundational Truth.
Foundational Truth according to the dictionary is defined as a basis upon which something stands or is supported.
As believers of Christ Jesus our foundation is Christ Himself, on Christ the solid rock I stand all other ground is sinking sand, and we cannot build on another 1 Corinthians 3:11says, “For other foundation can no man lay than that is laid, which is Jesus Christ”.
Biblical foundational truth is truth supported in the Word of God by God. Everything that we as faithful believers of Christ believes must be based upon, supported, and founded on and in the Word of God.
Every aspect in the life of a believer should be in alignment with the Word of God. For Jesus Christ and His Word is the source, the truth, the foundation, of every believer's life.
Matthew 16:13-20 Jesus asked whom do men say that I am Peter stood and said verse 16 “Thou art Christ the Son of the living God” that is a foundational truth that the Church is built upon. Some people want to deny that and say no he was just a prophet, he was just a man, no He is the Son of the Living God. Other foundational truths the church is based upon Salvation belongs to God alone. God saves. Salvation is received from God alone. Salvation is received by being born again. By being born again, we become the children of God (Galatians 3:26; Revelation 21:7). We become the children of God by receiving the salvation of God (Matthew 12:49-50; Galatians 3:26). We receive the salvation of God by believing God is God and believe all He says He is in His word. (Psalm 80:3; Isaiah 45:22; Hebrews 11:6). We believe God is God through faith (Romans 5:1-2, 10:9). We receive faith by the grace of God (Philippians 3:9). We receive the grace of God through Christ Jesus (Romans 5:15; Ephesians 2:7). We receive Christ Jesus by believing He can save us from sin and death through faith to salvation (1 Peter 1:5; Acts 15:11; Romans 10:13; Hebrews 10:10, 39). We receive salvation from sin and death by the grace of God through faith in Christ Jesus (Ephesians 2:8; Romans 8:2; Titus 2:11; 2 Timothy 3:15).
Foundational truth is the Word of God and is the truth of God, for which the Church of God is built upon. It is continual and changes not.
Another component the Church is based upon is Demonstration of Power. This is the part that puts an exclamation point behind the fact that Pentecost was not a one-time event.
Demonstration of Power.
1 Corinthians 2:4-6 says, “And my speech and my preaching was not with enticing words of man's wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power: That your faith should not stand in the wisdom of men, but in the power of God. Howbeit we speak wisdom among them that are perfect: yet not the wisdom of this world, nor of the princes of this world, that come to nought”.
Power is defined as 1) the ability to act effectively and 2) the capacity to direct or influence the behavior of others or the course of events. These two definitions accurately describe the power of the Holy Ghost. Because the power of the Holy Ghost is literally the power of God, the ability to act and influence is infinite, unlimited, and eternal. In this way, the power of the Holy Ghost is different from any other kind of power.
The Spirit's power was first seen acting effectively in the act of creation, for it was by His power the world came into being Genesis 1:1–2; Job 26:13. The power in creation was unique in that it produced everything from nothing. This raw, incomparable power could only belong to God, the Creator. The Spirit's creative power is seen in His creating new life in believers, producing spiritually alive beings out of those who were once dead in sin John 3:6; Ephesians 2:1–2; Titus 3:5. To this day, the salvation of souls is a supernatural work only made possible by the Holy Ghost's power as He turns men from darkness to light.
The power to influence the behavior of others and the course of events is seen throughout the Bible as the Holy Ghost empowered men to bring about God's will and foreordained plans. The power of the Holy Ghost enabled the disciples of Christ to turn the world upside down with the powerful preaching of the gospel. They could not have accomplished this in their own power.
Acts 1:8 says, “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth”. Jesus promised that the Spirit would come, live within them, and empower them in a miraculous way.
Jesus had ascended into heaven and the disciples, who had been in hiding from the Romans were gathered in one place and on one accord waiting for ten days for the promise Jesus stated in Acts 1:8. Then when the Day of Pentecost was fully come filled with the power of the Holy Ghost.
Pentecost was the celebration of the beginning of the early weeks of harvest. In Palestine, there were two harvests each year. The early harvest came during the months of May and June; the final harvest came in the Fall. Also, the Holy Ghost was poured out on Shavuot, the day that the Law had been given some fourteen hundred years earlier. Shavuot and Pentecost are different names for the same day; Shavuot is Hebrew and Pentecost is Greek. They mean 50 days after Passover.
On the Day of Pentecost, the 120 that were in the upper room suddenly there came a sound of a mighty rushing wind and it filled the house where they were sitting and there appeared unto them cloven tongues as of a fire and sat upon each of them and they were filled with the Holy Ghost and began to speak with other tongues as the Spirit gave them utterance.
Now this was DISRUPTIVE because Acts 2:6-13 talks about the different nationalities that were present in Jerusalem and they were amazed and even mocked them. They couldn’t understand what was going on so they accused them of being drunk and began to mock them it disrupted their activities, it disrupted their routine, it caused them to change their course and then ask the question “What meaneth this”?
Peter in verse 14 stands up with the eleven other disciples and begins to preach the Pentecostal Sermon he says in verse 15 these are not drunk as ye suppose they are not drunk from wine but they are drunk in the spirit of GOD. Then he says in verse 16 this is that which was prophesied by the prophet Joel bringing back to their memory the prophecy that was prophesied nearly 800 years before. Then he begins to preach to them how Jesus their hope, their deliverance, their healer was right there among them, he walked among them, he performed miracles in their midst, he lived among them, but they rejected him, had him brought before Pilate, judged him, scorged him, and crucified him. However, this same Jesus whom they rejected, this same Jesus whom they crucified has risen from the dead, ascended into heaven sitting on the right hand of God and has been made Lord and Christ. When they heard this they realized their mistake, they realized they crucified their hope and deliverance, their chance is now gone they began to be fearful, condemned and became pricked in their hearts, then they ask one of the greatest questions in scripture “Men and brethren what shall we do”?
Their routine has been disrupted, their hearts have been convicted now Peter begins to tell them what the only hope of salvation is, there’s no other way, this is the mandate, this is what you must do in order to be saved. This is a foundational truth which will produce the demonstration of power. In Acts 2:38 Peter says, “Repent, and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins, and ye shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost”. Notice he didn’t say repeat after me, he didn’t say to them say the sinner’s prayer, he didn’t say Lord come into my heart a sinner and then welcome into the church saying they are saved, he didn’t say Oh God just wants you to be happy because that’s not the mandate, that’s not foundational truth that will never produce the demonstration of power that disrupts theirs life and changes their course.
He said REPENT – Turn from your wicked ways, become godly sorrowful of the things you have done, turn around and head into the opposite direction, change your way of thinking, change your way of living. Turn from sin and dedicate your life to Jesus Christ.
Then he said and be Baptized everyone of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the remission of sins. Notice he didn’t say only a few of you, he didn’t say some of you, he said everyone must be baptized, not in the name of Buddha, not in the name of Muhammed, not in the name of Vishnu, but in the name of the one you rejected, in the name of the one you cast away, in the name of the one you crucified, in the name of Jesus. For there is no other name given under heaven whereby we must be saved. You must be baptized in the name of Jesus for he is the embodiment of the fulness of the Godhead, he is the Father, the Son, and the Holy Ghost and his name is Jesus. Then you shall receive the gift of the Holy Ghost.
The Gift of the Holy Ghost will disrupt your life, the gift of the Holy Ghost will redirect your course, the gift of the Holy Ghost will make you a new creature old things will pass away and behold all things will become new. That’s foundational truth and when foundational truth is established it will demonstrate in power. Verse 41 says, “Then they that gladly received his word were baptized: and the same day there were added unto them about three thousand souls”. Those that received the Word of Godly gladly, not everyone will receive it, but for those that did and those that will the Holy Ghost demonstrated its power, and 3000 souls were added. 3000 souls were disrupted, changed, and made new.
The Holy Ghost is foundational truth, the Holy Ghost will demonstrate in power. A little while later in Acts 3 Peter and John were going to the temple to pray at 3:00 in the afternoon when they encountered a man who was lame at the gate called Beautiful who was asking of alms. This man was in a horrible condition, he was unable to walk, he had to depend on others to have pity on him, he couldn’t enter the Temple to pray but had to lay outside the gate hoping someone would give him a little money to survive. The Bible says then “Peter fastening his eyes on him with John said look upon us. Silver and gold have I none, but that such as I have give I thee. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth rise up and walk. And he took him by the right hand and lifted him up and immediately his feet and ankle bones received strength”. This man’s life, his beggar and hopeless existence was disrupted, his course was immediately changed, he went from being a lame beggar to being a man healed, delivered, and set free from the curse of sin.
CLOSING: - Let me say today on the Pentecostal Sunday, Happy Birthday Church and the power of the Holy Ghost still has the power to disrupt lives, still has the power to influence people and change the course of people’s lives and events in the world just like it did on the Day of Pentecost, in Antioch, at the gate called Beautiful and many other examples
Colossians 1:9-14 says, “For this cause we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to desire that ye might be filled with the knowledge of his will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; That ye might walk worthy of the Lord unto all pleasing, being fruitful in every good work, and increasing in the knowledge of God; Strengthened with all might, according to his glorious power, unto all patience and longsuffering with joyfulness; Giving thanks unto the Father, which hath made us meet to be partakers of the inheritance of the saints in light: Who hath delivered us from the power of darkness, and hath translated us into the kingdom of his dear Son: In whom we have redemption through his blood, even the forgiveness of sins”.
Our faith is built upon Christ Jesus, our solid Rock by which we stand, our foundation as believers of the Most High God can be in none other than God. Foundational truth demonstrated in Power.
Bishop Melvin L. Maughmer, Jr.
